Emerging mobile devices have abilities that far exceed standard voice communications. For example, mobile devices may be equipped with one or more transceivers that are configured to facilitate the transmission and reception of information utilizing various wired and/or wireless communication mediums. The ability to efficiently communicate information including voice, text, data, multimedia, etc. allows for the introduction of new functionality into mobile devices related to, for example, interpersonal interactions (e.g., email, messaging, social media, etc.), business, productivity, gaming, shopping, etc. As a result, simple cellular handsets have evolved into powerful multipurpose mobile platforms with the ability to run a large array of applications.
Early applications were directed to baseline communication functionality such as email, messaging, news feeds, etc. However, quickly applications have become more advanced, with the ability to draw on various features in a device. For example, a shopping application may be able to communicate with remote resources accessible via a wide area network (e.g., the Internet) to determine manufacturers, specifications, pricing, availability, etc. for a particular product. In addition, if the particular product is determined to be available locally, the application may be able to access location services in the mobile device to illustrate the location of the particular product, to guide the device user to the product, etc. In this manner applications may interact with various features in a mobile device to provide desired functionality to the device user.
While the benefits are evident, applications executing on mobile devices are not without some negative repercussions. In particular, applications accessing one or more communication resources in a mobile device may cause the mobile device to consume a large amount of energy. Moreover, some applications, such as the example shopping application described, continuously access communication resources to provide location, guidance, etc. This continuous operation exacerbates the energy consumption, negatively impacting the performance of the mobile device.
Although the following Detailed Description will proceed with reference being made to illustrative embodiments, many alternatives, modifications and variations thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art.